Portable cooking stove



Oct. 11, 1966 T. F. KIRBY PORTABLE COOKING STOVE Filed Jan. 8, 1965 EMMA/Mk0)? [4W zg/ United States Patent "ice 3,277,880 PORTABLE COOKING STOVE Thomas F. Kirby, 6434 Betsy Ross Place, Wauwatosa, Wis. Filed Jan. 8, 1965, Ser. No. 424,289 Claims. (Cl. 126-40) This invention relates generally to portable cooking stoves or camping stoves. More specifically, it relates to improvements in the construction of such stoves to simplify their manufacture and reduce their cost.

Portable cooking stoves of the single or multiple burner type are presently in very wide use in civilian life and in the military. Some stoves employ a liquid fuel such as gasoline or white gas which is poured into a tank which is a permanent part of the stove unit. Other stoves employ low pressure bottled gas such as propane or butane which is supplied in throw-away bottles which are detachably mounted on the stove unit. While existing stoves are well suited for their intended purpose, they have become very highly refined, complicated and relatively costly to fabricate. In addition, most stoves presently available are so constructed that they occupy a great deal of space and cannot be knocked down or partially disassembled to conserve space during shipment from the manufacturer or while being held as inventory in a warehouse or store.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved portable cooking stove or camp stove using a replaceable gas bottle. 7

Another object is to provide a stove of the aforesaid character wherein the replaceable gas bottle is compactly associated with the stove and adds stability and rigidity to the stove.

Another object is to provide a stove of the aforesaid character which is fabricated of a minimum number of readily available, easily fabricated and low cost components.

Another object is to provide a stove of the aforesaid character which employs an improved base element, which employs improved means for supporting grill elements on the base without the use of separate fastening devices, and which has an improved burner assembly.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter appear.

The accompanying drawing illustrates a preferred embodiment of the invention, it being understood that the embodiment illustrated is susceptible of modifications with respect to details thereof without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a portable cooking stove incorporating the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the base of the stove shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the base of the stove shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and shows the base during one stage of its manufacture;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the base of the stove showing how it is bent or sprung during one stage of manufacture to receive wire grill elements;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view of a burner assembly employed in the stove; and

FIG. 6 is a view showing a plurality of stoves incor porating the invention partly disassembled and in stacked relationship.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the numeral 10 designates a portable cooking stove incorporating the present invention. Stove 10 comprises a base 12, a plurality of grill elements 14 mounted on the base, a fuel feed assembly 16 mounted on the base, and a burner 18 mounted on 3,277,880 Patented Oct. 11, 1966 the base. In FIG. 1, stove 10 is shown associated with a replaceable fuel bottle 20 which is mounted on base 12 and connected to fuel feed assembly 16. Fuel bottle 20 is a commercially available type of metal bottle which, for example, contains propane, butane or other fuel under pressure and which is adapted to be replaced with a similar bottle when the fuel therein is expended.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, base 12 of stove 10 is understood to be fabricated from a single piece of sturdy but somewhat resilient sheet metal which is prepunched and bent as hereinafter described. After being prepunched, as hereinafter described, base 12 is bent to provide a pair of downwardly depending legs 22 and 24 and a top portion comprising a pair of shoulders 30 and 32 and a depressed portion 42 therebetween. The shoulders 30 and 32 have top surfaces 34 and 36, respectively, and inner sides 38 and 40, respectively. Preferably, the legs 22 and 24 terminate in flanges or feet 44 and 46, respectively, to give base 12 greater rigidity and stability when resting on a flat surface. The legs 22 and 24 of base 12 are divergent so that one stove 10 may be stacked in telescoped relationship upon another as shown in FIG. 6 to conserve space in packaging for shipment or storage.

Means are provided for mounting fuel bottle 20 on base 12 of stove 10 and comprise substantially circular holes 48 and 50 in the legs 22 and 24, respectively, of the base.

The holes 48 and 50 are preferably located as close to the lower ends of the legs 22 and 24 as is practical to afford maximum stability for base 12 when fuel bottle 20 is in place and to keep the fuel bottle as far below burner element 18 as it consistent with safety. The diameters of the holes 48 and 50 are slightly larger than the diameter of fuel bottle 20 to allow for easy insertion and to account for foreshortening caused by the diverging of legs 22 and 24. When mounted on base 12, bottle 20 exerts a window locking effect on the legs 22 and 24 which prevents their flexing as heavy utensils are placed on stove 10. The divergency of the legs aids in the window locking effect.

Leg 22 of base .12 is further provided with a hole 52 for accommodating a fuel line 54 of fuel feed assembly 16 hereinafter described.

Inner side 38 of shoulder 30 of base 12 is provided with a hole 56 for accommodating burner 18, hereinafter described.

The shoulders 30 and 32 of base 12 are provided with slots 58 and 60, respectively, for accommodating the ends of the grill elements 14. For example, each slot 58 extends through top surface 34 and inner side 38 of shoulder 30. Similarly, slot 60 extends through top surface 36 and inner side 40 of shoulder 32. Each grill element 14 is made of a length of relatively rigid wire and each element is longer by the length of slot 58 on top surface 34 than the distance A plus B or the distance A plus C shown in FIG. 2. Each slot 58 and 60 is slightly wider than the diameter or thickness of a grill element 14 and is at least slightly more than two times longer (referring dimensionwise to the flattened base in FIG. 3), than the diameter or thickness of a grill element 14; a length of about three times the diameter being preferable.

During assembly and after the blank of base 12 (shown in FIG. 3) is punched and folded to the shape shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, one end of each grill element 14 is inserted, for example, in its slot 58 sufiiciently far so as to touch the inside of leg 22. Base 12 is then bent, for example, to the position shown in FIG. 4 so that the distance D (in FIG. 4) is greater than the length of each grill element 14. Then the other end of each grill element 14 is inserted in its corresponding slot 60 and base v1-2 is allowed to spring back, due to its resiliency to the position shown in FIG. 2. Thus, each grill element 14 is mounted by entrapment on base 12.. This manner of construction is extremely economical in that it eliminates the need for welding or otherwise fabricating a grill element which must in turn be fastened to the base. It is also more desirable than threading the ends of the grill elements and fastening them to the base by nuts or other fastening dev1ces.

Means, such as fuel feed assembly 16, are provided to connect fuel bottle 20 to burner 18. Fuel feed assembly 16 comprises a regulating valve unit 62 such as a commercially available type wihch is adapted for detachable connection at one end to fuel bottle 20 to effect opening of the bottle and to effect regulation of the fuel flow therefrom. Valve unit 60 is connected at its other end to one end of fuel line 54. Fuel line 54 extends through the holes 52 and 56 of base 12 and is threaded at its other end to accommodate nuts 64 and 66. If preferred, fuel line 54 may be provided with a coupling (not shown) to accommodate fuel bottles, such as bottle 20, which are already provided with valves such as valve 62. During assembly nut 64 is threaded onto fuel line 64 and the latter is inserted through hole 52. Then nut 66 is threaded onto fuel line 64 (after which a nut 68 is slipped over the end of the fuel line). Then, the nuts 64 and 66 are taken up to locate the extreme end of fuel line 64 in proper position with respect to burner 18 and to rigidly secure fuel feed assembly 16 to base 12. As is apparent, when fuel bottle 20 is connected to fuel assembly 16 it is thereby held in place against axial movement with respect to base 12.

Burner 18 is fabricated, for example, of a length of hollow cylindrical tubing or thin pipe which has a su: stantially greater inside diameter than the outside diameter of fuel line 54. Burner 18 is closed at one end by pinching off or wedging as at 70 and is provided with a plurality of holes 72 on or near its upper side to .permit the flow of a combustible fuel-air mixture. Burner 18 is externally threaded at its other end to accommodate nut 68 hereinbefore referred to and another nut 74. Burner '18 is pinched on two sides as at 76 and 78 to provide a constriction near the end of fuel line 54 of fuel assembly I16 to enhance the venturi effect required to insure proper mixture of fuel from fuel line 54 and combustion air which enters burner 18 through passage 80. During assembly, nut 74 is threaded onto burner 18 and the latter is inserted into hole 56. Then, nut 74 already loosely disposed on fuel line 54 is threaded onto burner 18. The nuts 68 and 74 are then taken up to properly locate burner 18 with respect to fuel line 54 and to rigidly secure burner '18 to base 12. If preferred, burner assemblies of a type other than that shown could be employed but elongated burner 18 is desirable from the standpoint of simplicity of fabrication. For example, a circular type burner could be employed.

Stove is placed in readiness for operation by inserting the head of fuel bottle 20 through hole 50 and through hole 48 in base 12 and connecting it to valve 62 by rotation. However, if fuel bottle 20 is provided with a valve 62, then a coupling (not shown) is employed to connect the valve 62 to fuel line 54. Connections of fuel bottle 20 prevents its axial displacement with respect to base 12.

After fuel bottle 20 is in place, valve 62 is opened to permit fuel to flow through fuel line 54 and into burner 18. As the fuel passes through the constricted portion of burner 18, it causes air to be drawn through opening 80 of the burner. The mixture of air and fuel is forced out through the holes 72 in burner 18 and is then ignited by suitable means such as a match or flint. The flame issuing from burner 18 is regulated by opening or closing valve 62 to the desired amount.

In the event of a backfire of flame through opening 80 of burner 18, as is common in aspiration type burners, the human operator is protected because the backfire flame is below the shoulder 30. An additional safety feature is provided by the fact that fuel bottle 20 is shielded from the flame of burner 18 by the top portion of base 12 and by the insulation space between the bottle and the underside of the top portions of base 12.

After stove 10 is lit, utensils can be placed directly over burner .18 on the grill elements 14. Larger utensils can rest on the fiat top surfaces 34 and 35 of the shoulders 30 and 32, respectively, of base 12.

The stove is turned off by closing valve 62 completely.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that a stove could be constructed in accordance with the present invention to employ two or more burners such as burner 18 and that the plurality of burners could be fed from a single fuel bottle or from individual fuel bottles mounted on a base similar to base 12 but adapted to accommodate two or more fuel bottles in the manner disclosed herein.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. In a portable cooking stove, in combination, a base, said base comprising an upper portion having a pair of spaced apart shoulders and one of said shoulders having an aperture on the inner side thereof, said base further comprising a pair of depending legs and each of said legs having a first aperture therein, one of said legs having a second aperture therein in addition to said first aperture, a plurality of grill elements mounted on the upper portion of said base between said pair of shoulders, a burner projecting through said aperture on the inner side of said shoulder and rigidly secured to said base, a fuel feed assembly having one end associated with said burner and extending through said second aperture, and a removable fuel tank extending through both of said first apertures in said legs, said fuel tank ,being rigidly connected to the other end of said fuel feed assembly.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said burner has a threaded end projecting through said aperture on the inner side of said one shoulder and is secured to said base by at least one nut.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said fuel feed assembly has a threaded portion projecting through said second aperture and is secured to said base by at least one nut.

4. In a portable cooking stove, in combination, a base having an upper portion and a pair of depending legs, said upper portion having a pair of spaced apart shoulders and each shoulder having a plurality of apertures therealong, a plurality of grill elements mounted on the upper portion of said base, each grill element having one end extending into an aperture in one shoulder and another end extending into a corresponding aperture in the other shoulder, a burner mounted beneath said grill element, a fuel feed assembly for supplying fuel to said burner, and a fuel tank removably mounted on said base and connected to said fuel feed assembly.

5. In a portable cooking stove, in combination, a base having an upper portion and a pair of depending legs, said upper portion having a pair of spaced apart shoulders, each shoulder having an inside surface and a top surface which join one of said pair of legs, each shoulder having a plurality of spaced apart apertures along a line where said top surface of said shoulder joins said inside surface of said shoulder, each aperture lying partly on either side of said line, a plurality of grill elements mounted on the upper portion of said base, each grill element having one end extending into an aperture in one shoulder and another end extending into a corresponding aperture in the other shoulder, each grill element being slightly longer than the sum of the distance between the inside surfaces of said pair of shoulders and the distance between one leg and the inside surface of one of said shoulders and the distance between the inside surfiace of the other of said shoulders and a ventical plane passing through the top edge of an aperture in the other of said shoulders, a burner mounted beneath said grill elements, a fuel feed assembly for supplying fuel to said burner, and a fuel tank removably mounted on said base and connected to said fuel feed assembly.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,551,788 9/1925 Benson 126-38 2,728,335 12/1955 Garrett et al. 12638 2,954,024 7/1960 Webster 12638 3,139,879 7/1964 Bauer et al. 126-38 X FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR., Primary Examiner. E. G. FAVORS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A PORTABLE COOKING STOVE, IN COMBINATION, A BASE, SAID BASE COMPRISING AN UPPER PORTION HAVING A PAIR OF SPACED APART SHOULDERS AND ONE OF SAID SHOULDERS HAVING AN APERTURE ON THE INNER SIDE THEREOF, SAID BASE FURTHER COMPRISING A PAIR OF DEPENDING LEGS AND EACH OF SAID LEGS HAVING A FIRST APERTURE THEREIN, ONE OF SAID LEGS HAVING A SECOND APERTURE THEREIN IN ADDITION TO SAID FIRST APERTURE, A PLURALITY OF GRILL ELEMENTS MOUNTED ON THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID BASE BETWEEN SAID PAIR OF SHOULDERS, A BURNER PROJECTING THROUGH SAID APERTURE ON THE INNER SIDE OF SAID SHOULDER AND RIGIDLY SECURED TO SAID BASE, A FUEL FEED ASSEMBLY HAVING ONE END ASSOCIATED 